GEORGE TOWN, Malaysia, May 19 (Bernama-PRNewswire) -- Ikano Centres today officially unveils 'Klippa' as the name of its retail destination and mixed-use development, which aims to be the cultural heart and hub for the growing Batu Kawan township. Ikano Centres is part of Ikano Retail, which owns IKEA stores in five countries as well as shopping centres that are anchored by IKEA. This is Ikano Centres' first northern region presence.
Conveniently located with direct access to the Second Penang Bridge and seamless connection to IKEA, Klippa will offer a unique retail experience with an integrated shopping centre spanning 1.6 million sqft of Gross Leasable Area (GLA) and housing over 300 brands. Ikano Centres is also exploring additional commercial and residential opportunities to add to its meeting place, which will be developed in a phased approach to meet Batu Kawan's growing community of students, families, and professionals at the neighbouring Batu Kawan Industrial Park (BKIP).
The first phase of Klippa was launched in December 2019 complementing a great day out at IKEA Batu Kawan with 20 brands over 80,000 sqft of GLA. Next, a unique F&B drive-thru was introduced in November 2021. Its first tenant was a McDonald's drive-thru providing more dining options for the community. Klippa also intends to drive the local arts and culture scene in line with Penang State Government's vision to bring arts and culture to Batu Kawan and fulfil the synonymity of Penang with street art.
Adrian Mirea, Shopping Centre and Mixed-Use Director at Ikano Centres said, "As we continue to strengthen our presence in Malaysia, we want to introduce the Ikano Centres retail experience to communities in the northern region to mirror the success of our meeting places in central and southern Malaysia. Klippa means rock or friend in Swedish, and is the perfect word play to describe Batu Kawan. With Klippa, we aim to be the rock in this growing community and to transform Batu Kawan into a successful commercial and leisure hub in Penang. The emphasis of this meeting place development is to provide visitors in the region a holistic customer experience, enhanced with convenience for all their shopping, dining, entertainment and leisure needs. In addition, Klippa will also create 5,000 job opportunities for locals to uplift the social-economic well-being of Penangites.
Arnoud Bakker, Commercial Director at Ikano Centres said, "We look forward to welcoming more partners that share the same community-spirit, to further build a retail destination that Malaysians and tourists will want to visit. Since its opening, the first phase of Klippa has enjoyed a 98% lease rate, with established tenants such as IKEA, Harvey Norman and McDonald's who have given us the motivation to continue developing and creating spaces for our communities. As we grow, we will continue to evaluate the needs of our customers in North Malaysia and design our Klippa meeting place accordingly."
Bakker added, "We are also working closely in collaboration with Aspen Vision City (AVC) and our partners at the neighbouring Batu Kawan Industrial Park to position Klippa as the place where people can live, work and create memories together."
Klippa will have the right combination of tenants to serve the different needs of its targeted consumers. In addition to the list of key tenants in operation, Klippa will soon host new openings of essential offerings and food and beverages with brands such as TMG Plus Supermarket, Mr DIY, Mr TOY, KFC, Tealive drive-thru, A&W drive-thru, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Kenny Rogers, Zus Coffee, Chicago Chicken City and a petrol station with an integrated drive-thru Starbucks.
